Is Now The Time To Look At Buying Unum Group (NYSE:UNM)?

Want to participate in a short research study? Help shape the future of investing tools and you could win a $250 gift card!

Unum Group (NYSE:UNM), which is in the insurance business, and is based in United States, saw significant share price movement during recent months on the NYSE, rising to highs of $37.54 and falling to the lows of $31.49. Some share price movements can give investors a better opportunity to enter into the stock, and potentially buy at a lower price. A question to answer is whether Unum Group's current trading price of $34.48 reflective of the actual value of the mid-cap? Or is it currently undervalued, providing us with the opportunity to buy? Let’s take a look at Unum Group’s outlook and value based on the most recent financial data to see if there are any catalysts for a price change.

Is Unum Group still cheap?

According to my relative valuation model, the stock seems to be currently fairly priced. I’ve used the price-to-earnings ratio in this instance because there’s not enough visibility to forecast its cash flows. The stock’s ratio of 14.14x is currently trading slightly below its industry peers’ ratio of 17.34x, which means if you buy Unum Group today, you’d be paying a reasonable price for it. And if you believe that Unum Group should be trading at this level in the long run, then there’s not much of an upside to gain from mispricing. Is there another opportunity to buy low in the future? Since Unum Group’s share price is quite volatile, we could potentially see it sink lower (or rise higher) in the future, giving us another chance to buy. This is based on its high beta, which is a good indicator for how much the stock moves relative to the rest of the market.

What does the future of Unum Group look like?

Investors looking for growth in their portfolio may want to consider the prospects of a company before buying its shares. Buying a great company with a robust outlook at a cheap price is always a good investment, so let’s also take a look at the company's future expectations. Unum Group’s earnings over the next few years are expected to double, indicating a very optimistic future ahead. This should lead to stronger cash flows, feeding into a higher share value.

What this means for you:

Are you a shareholder? UNM’s optimistic future growth appears to have been factored into the current share price, with shares trading around its fair value. However, there are also other important factors which we haven’t considered today, such as the track record of its management team. Have these factors changed since the last time you looked at UNM? Will you have enough conviction to buy should the price fluctuate below the true value?

Are you a potential investor? If you’ve been keeping an eye on UNM, now may not be the most advantageous time to buy, given it is trading around its fair value. However, the optimistic forecast is encouraging for UNM, which means it’s worth diving deeper into other factors such as the strength of its balance sheet, in order to take advantage of the next price drop.

We aim to bring you long-term focused research analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material.

If you spot an error that warrants correction, please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com. This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. Simply Wall St has no position in the stocks mentioned. Thank you for reading.